Automatic phrasing attachment.



H. L. HENTZ & J. W. VINAL.

AUTOMATIC PHRASING ATTACHMENT. APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 14, 1908.

Patented Aug. 26, 1913.

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H. L. HENTZ & J. W. VINAL. AUTOMATIC PHRASING ATTACHMENT.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 14,1906.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY L. HENTZ, OF WEST NEWTON, AND JOSEPH W. VINAL, 013 BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

AUTOMATIC PHRASING ATTACHMENT.

Application filed November 14, 1908.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, HARRY L. HENTZ and Josnri-r W. VINAL, citizens of the United States, residing at West Newton, in the county of Middlesex, and Boston, in the county of Suffolk, respectively, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Phrasing Attachments, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to automatic piano players wherein the hammers are actuated through any suitable medium controlled by a perforated music sheet moving over a trackerboard; and the object of this invention is the construction of improved means for automatically accenting certain notes or class of notes, as the melody, and thereby phrasing the music.

Referring to the drawings forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a face view of a portion of the music sheet used in carrying out our invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a piano action provided with our invention. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the frame designed to be placed in an ordinary upright piano for the support of the movable parts of our invention. Fig. 4 is a front elevation of a portion of a piano action provided with our invention. Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a modification of the invention.

Inasmuch as the hammer-actuating mechanism controlled by the music sheet is of the usual construction, it is unnecessary to illustrate the same in the drawings, for the only changes to be made in carrying out our invention are in connection with the music sheet and the piano action. Such changes in relation to the action consist essentially in the addition of a plurality of damping elements adapted to be moved between the strings and the hammers and thereby materially reduce the intensity of the hammerstrokes, and of means whereby certain of the perforations in the music sheet, or additional perforations,shall automatically cause one or more of said felt-strips to be interposed between designated groups of strings and their hammers.

As shown in Fig. 2, 3 designates in cross section a strip of felt or other damping material supported upon the vertically swinging frame or arms 4 pivoted at 5 to the fixed frame comprising the parallel bars 6, 7 ter- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented A11 26,1913.

Serial No. 462,634.

mina-lly held by the piano case, as by the cleats 8. Transversely between said bars extend the bolts 9, serving both to stiffen the frame and to fasten in place the blocks 10 to which the arms 4 are pivoted. The normal position of said felt strips is out of the path of the hammers, so that unless such strips are depressed, the strings are sounded with their maximum volume of tone. To swing the arms 4 and thereby depress the felt damping strips, a plurality of swinging frames,preferably four,-are pivoted to the blocks 12 and position in front of some moving part of the piano actions. The sim plest way to construct such frames is to form each from wire bent in U-shape, and hence consisting of uprights 13 and bar 14, the latter being inclosed within a fine rubber tube 15 to prevent rattling. The upper ends of said uprights are threaded and provided with nuts 16 for adjustably attaching them to the blocks 17. On such threaded extremities are collars 18 adjustably held in place by nuts 19. From said collars to similarly adjusted collars 20 extend flexible links 21 in such a manner that a forward swing of the frames permits the felts 3 to descend. The felt strips being normally held in their elevated position, by the springs 22 operating through the pull of the links 21, whenever a key is depressed and its action set in motion, the swinging frame engaged by such action is thrown over toward the strings, said links thereby loosened, and the felt strips permitted to drop into the path of the hammers.

Although each felt strip corresponds in location and extent with one of the swinging frames 13, 14, yet we prefer not to have such corresponding felts and frames bear any actuating relationship with each other. Instead, the links 21 'cross each other as shown in Fig. 4 in order that each frame shall operate the felt strip at one side of it. e do not have the two inner frames thus arranged, but simply the two right hand ones, and also the two left hand ones.

The music sheet 1 being supposed divided into four longitudinally extending sections, represented in Fig. 1 by three dotted lines, the perforations in the left-hand section will actuate the left-hand quarter of the pianos hammers, and consequently the left-hand frame 13, 14; but, the left-hand frame being linked to the damper-felt of the second quarter of hammers, the presentation to the tracker board of any perforation in said first section of the music sheet, drops the said second damper-felt and hence damps all the hammer-blows of the second quarter. In the same way, the presentation to the tracker board of any of the perforations in the second section of the music sheet causes the damper felt of the first quarter of the hammers to be depressed into the path of its hammers; and similarly, the perforations of the right hand music sheet section depress the damper felts of the third quarter of the piano strings, and the perforations of the third section of the music sheet depress the damper felts of the fourth or right hand quarter of the piano strings. The perforations of the second and third sections do not, however, affect each others correspond ing damper felts.

The operation of the piano player is as follows: The perforations marked M being those for the melody, or any other designated series of notes which should be accented, and the first five melcdy'perforations being exclusively in the third section, while a portion of the accompaniment-perforations are in the second section, it is necessary to provide the first section with a series of perforations, or preferably one elongated perforation N the first end of which is in octave with one of the accompaniment-perforations O. This elongated perforation will, consequently, cause the depression of the damper-felt of the second quarter of the strings and cause such accompanimentnotes to be subdued. In the third and fourth sections of the music sheet, there are accompanimentperforations whose effects are also to be subdued, and which will mutually control each other; but by having the melody perforations precede such accompaniment-perforations, the hammer actuated through each will have struck its string before the damper felt will have dropped, and consequently will vibrate the string with normal strength. The instant after these melody notes have been sounded, the damper felts of the third and fourth quarters will descend simultaneously with the actuation of the hammers and reach the path of the latter just prior to their blows, thereby rendering these accompaniment notes subdued, in the same manner as are those of the first and second. The same general rules hold good for the remainder of the music sheet perforations.

To retain the damper felts normally elevated, as above described, it is necessary to provide some counter-weight or spring, but preferably a light spring 22 for each frame 13, 14-. acting to yieldingly press the same toward the right,-that is, away from the strings 23.

Instead of the four sections into which the music sheet and dampers are supposed to be divided, it may be in but two equal ones, and these without the cross-over links 21. In this case, a different means for depressing the similarly divided damper felts 3 can be substituted as shown in Fig. 5. On the frame-bar 6 can he supported two equal rock shafts 25, each extending for half the length of the piano, or thereabout. Each rock shaft has a plate or rod 26 reaching beneath the short ends of the arms or le vers t carrying a strip or strips of damper felt 3 for half of the piano strings.

Rigid with each rock shaft 25 is an arm 27 from which descends a post 28 into engagement with the rear portion of one of the piano keys 29, or with any other simi larly moving part of the action. it is best to have the key selected one of the extreme ones at seldom used parts of the piano, and. to have the same rendered incapable of vibrating its associated string in any wellknown way, as by a small rubber or felt plug 32 inserted between the ack-arm 31 and the bar'30. F or such an arrangement, additional perforations P will have to be made at the edges of the music sheet. These perforations may be elongated, or divided into a plurality of smaller ones, but they are only to be used at either of the edges of the music sheet where the melody perforations M are in the opposite half thereof. Thus constructed,the damper felt or felts 3 will be dropped for the half of the piano where the melody notes are not being sounded, and the instant the melody perforations pass from one side to the other of the median line of the music sheet, then such edge perforation will terminate and will be provided in the opposite edge, in the half not now occupied by a melody perforation.

To subdue the accompaniment notes whose operative perforations are on the same side with the melody perforations, numerous short perforations R must be formed near the edge of the music sheet at such side equal in length to said accompaniment perforations. As the melody perforations M are ahead of said accompaniment perforations, the melody strings will have been struck by their hammers with normal strength before the edge perforations R will have caused the damper felts 3 to descend and subdue the accompaniment.

lVhile it is possible for the rock shaft 25 to extend unbroken for the full width of the piano, so that a set of perforations along one edge of the music sheet will subdue all simultaneous accompaniment notes, in the same manner as the-construction just described, yet this signifies rapid fluctuation of the entire damper felts, and consequent less perfect control, as compared with having the same in two sections one only of which must thus fluctuate.

Although we have termed the members 3 as damper felts, we do not mean to restrict ourselves to the same, inasmuch as any kind of yielding material can be used for the purpose, as fabric, leather or rubber.

\Vhat we claim as our invention and for which We desire Letters Patent is as follows, to wit 1. The combination with an automatic musical instrument embracing a music sheet having perforations therein and means for the production of musical tones controlled through the agency of said perforations, of phrasing means controlled by note controlling perforations not associated with the notes to be phrased.

2. The combination with an automatic musical instrument embracing a tracker board having tracker ducts, and a music sheet having note-controlling perforations therein and pneumatic means controlled through said note-controlling perforations for producing musical tones, of phrasing means controlled through said note-controlling perforations and tracker ducts for phrasing the musical notes.

3. The combination with an automatic musical instrument embracing a music sheet having note-controlling perforations therein, and pneumatic means controlled through said notecontrolling perforations for producing musical tones, of means controlled through the same note-controlling perforations for phrasing the musical tones, said note controlling perforations whose notes are to be phrased being overlapped by other note controlling perforations not associated with the notes to be phrased.

f. The combination with an automatically played musical instrument embracing a perforated music sheet, of a plurality of phrasing means controlled by perforations in said sheet, perforations at either side of a specified line controlling the phrasing means of notes actuated through the agency of perforations at the other side of said line.

5. The combination with an automatically played musical instrument provided with sonorous strings, percussive hammers there for, and a key-board and action for actuating said hammers, of means for diminishing the percussive effect of said hammers on said strings; said means being divided into a plurality of sections, and means controlling each section and controlled by a part of said action, the part of the action controlling one of said sections being that which actuates the hammers of strings which are associated with another of said sections.

6. The combination with a musical instrument provided with sonorous strings,

percussive hammers therefor, and automatic means embracing a perforated music sheet for operating said hammers, of a plurality of independent means for damping the percussive effects of said hammers, and means for causing one of said damping means, but none of the others, to act when any one of a restricted group of hammers is operated.

7. The combination with a musical instrument provided wit-h sonorous strings, percussive hammers therefor, and automatic means for operating said hammers, of a plurality of independent damping means each affecting a group of said hammers, and means whereby the actuation of one member of a plurality of groups of hammer operating means will cause the action of one alone of said damping means.

8. The combination with a musical instrument provided with sonorous strings, percussive hammers therefor, and automatic means for operating said hammers, of a plurality of independent damping means each affecting a group of said hammers, and means whereby the actuation of one member of a plurality of groups of hammer operating means will cause the action of one alone of said damping means; the lastnamed groups being equal in number to the damping means, and each group of hammer operating means being in control of a damping means which does not affect the hammers operated by such group.

9. The combination of a musical instrument provided with sonorous strings, percussive hammers therefor, means for actuating said hammers embracing a perforated music sheet, a plurality of felt strips normally positioned close to but out of the path between said hammers and strings, and means for temporarily moving said felt strips into said path; such means being actuated through the agency of perforations in said sheet which also act to operate said hammers.

10. The combination of a musical instru ment provided with sonorous strings, percussive hammers therefor, means for actuating said hammers embracing a perforated music sheet, a plurality of damping strips normally positioned close to but out of the path between said hammers and strings and means for temporarily moving said strips into said path; such means being actuated through the agency of perforations in said sheet which also act to operate said hammers, and the perforations in said sheet at either side of a specified line controlling the strips in the paths of hammers actuated through the agency of perforations at the other side of said line.

11. The combination of a musical instrument provided with sonorous strings, percussive hammers therefor, a keyboard for operating said hammers, a plurality of damping devices, each afiecting its proportion of said hammers, and an equal number of damper controlling devices each affected by any one member of a group of the keys; each device controlling a damper at one side of it but not the one behind it.

12. The combination of a musical instrument provided with sonorous strings, percussive hammers therefor, a key board and parts movable by said keys for operating said hammers, a plurality of damping felts pivotally supported above and between the hammers and strings, each felt affecting its proportion of the hammers independently of the other felts, an equal number of swinging frames depending into the path of certain of the parts by which the keys operatethe hammers, and a flexible link joining each said frame and one of said felts and normally holding the latter inoperative, whereby the striking of any key swings one of said frames and causes the descent of a felt into the path of other hammers than that operated by such key.

13. The combination of a musical instrument provided with sonorous strings, percussive hammers therefor, a key board and action for operating said hammers, said action including swinging members, a plurality of vertically swinging frames supported above said hammers each carrying a damping felt close to the strings, an equal number of swinging frames each being in the path of a certain number of said members, a link between each of the last-named frames and one of the vertically swinging frames, and yielding means pressing the second-named swinging frames against said members and supporting the felts normally elevated.

In testimony that We claim the foregoing invention, we have hereunto set our hands this 12th day of November, 1908.

HARRY L. HENTZ. JOSEPH WV. VIN AL.

l/Vitnesses A. B. UPHAM, BURTON P. GRAY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

